Systems and Methods for Tethered Drones

ABSTRACT

In an example embodiment, a drone-based system comprises: a base station, wherein the base station is configured to provide drone control and power, a drone; a tether connecting the base station to the drone and configured to provide the drone with the power from the base station; and a lighting system, operably attached to the drone via the tether, configured to generate illumination of a ground area, wherein the illumination of the ground area is controllable by modifying least one of an intensity of the illumination and a height of the drone above the ground area.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. provisional patent applicationNo. 63/243,389, filed Sep. 13, 2021, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Drones, also referred to as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), performairborne functions without the necessity of a pilot on board. Thus, adrone can be a very light and small device, but can still performimaging, surveillance, and even delivery functions at low cost. Becausedrones are typically battery powered, their time airborne is limited tothe battery discharge time.

Temporary lighting is frequently used for construction areas, events,security, and other applications where large area illumination isrequired, both during non-daylight hours as well as in low-lightsituations. Current illumination units are typically trailered deviceswith extendable/telescoping poles that place an illumination source at aheight of 10′-100′. Such solutions can be expensive, and because theheight is relatively limited, require that the illumination be providedat an angle of approximately 20°-50° from the horizon, thus producing avery elongated cone of illumination with fairly uneven coverage.

SUMMARY

It is desirable to have a lighting solution that allows for deploymentof the light source at a height such that the illumination can bedirected at an angle approximating normal to the horizon or at steeperangles from the horizon than can be obtained via extendable ortelescoping poles. It is also desirable to have the ability to readilyredirect the illumination, adjust the cone of illumination, andpotentially track objects to maintain constant or near-constantillumination on these objects.

A method and system is proposed in which a tethered drone is used tomaintain an illumination source at an altitude and an angle thatprovides for sufficient illumination of the area of interest. In someembodiments, a tethered drone is used to deploy a light source of80,000-100,000 lumens at a height of 10′-100′ with the ability tomaintain the illumination source directly or near directly over the areato be illuminated. In alternate embodiments, the drone can be deployedat higher altitudes (e.g. 100′-400′) and the light directed to bothareas beneath the drone and to surrounding areas, at angles betweennormal to the surface and the horizon.

In an embodiment, a base station is used to store the drone as well asfor providing power to the drone and providing for drone control via awired or wireless drone controller that is stored in and operablyconnected (via cable or wirelessly) to the base station. A tetherconnects the base station to the drone and provides power to the dronefor operational use. A lighting system is operably connected to thedrone via mechanical and electrical subsystems that both attach thelighting system to the drone (either fixedly or in an adjustableconfiguration) and provide power for the lighting system. In anembodiment, power is supplied to the drone which then supplies power tothe lighting system, while in an alternate embodiment power is routed tothe drone and the lighting system separately via cables in the tetherthat are routed appropriately at the drone. In yet another embodiment,the drone controller communicates directly with the drone, wirelessly orvia a cable in the tether carrying control signals, either separately orover the power cable itself (e.g. using Ethernet-over-power or otheralternate protocols).

In an embodiment, a light level output adjustment controller is beconnected to the lighting system and allows for control of the outputlevel of the lighting system. In an embodiment, the controls for thelighting system are integrated into the drone controller, while in analternate embodiment the controls for the lighting system are integratedinto the base station or placed on a separate lighting controller.Control signals for the lighting system can be transmitted from thecontrols to the lighting system either wirelessly or via wires embeddedin the tether.

Several control modes can be used to maintain the desired lighting fromthe drone and lighting assembly. In an embodiment the altitude of thedrone, as determined via a barometric sensor in the drone which measuresan Above Ground Level (AGL) reference, is used to vary the intensity ofthe lighting such that when the drone is at higher altitudes (furtherabove the ground) the light intensity is increased, and when the droneis at lower altitudes (closer to the ground) the light intensity isdecreased. In an alternate embodiment, the distance of the drone fromthe base station is measure via the amount of tether that is deployed.In this embodiment, the vertical distance of the drone from the basestation, the horizontal distance of the drone from the base station, ora combination of the two distances, can be used to vary the intensity ofthe lighting. In other embodiments, alternate height control andaltitude monitoring including LIDAR, GPS, and/or RTK GPS can be used.

In an embodiment, both the altitude of the drone and the intensity ofthe light are varied to obtain a desired or specified intensity ofillumination. The desired intensity of illumination can be determinedvia measurement, obtained via light meter (either standalone orincorporated into a device such as the base station, drone or lightingcontroller unit, or a smart phone) or as determined via visualobservation by an operator. In an embodiment, an operator can place areference card containing suitable graphics in the area of illuminationto determine if the illumination is within the specified range. In analternate embodiment the light output can be calculated based on one ormore operating parameters including but not limited to the current beingconsumed by the lighting system, or current and voltage to the lightingsystem. The calculated value can be stored and used in conjunction withthe height of the drone above the surface to calculate the amount oflight (intensity of illumination) on the ground.

In an embodiment, the lighting system comprises a plurality ofindividually addressable intensity-controlled lighting units. As anexample, four separate lighting units can be used, each of the lightingunits having a variable output intensity. Having individuallyaddressable lighting units provides the ability to vary the lightingacross a surface, either to obtain a higher degree of lighting in onearea, or to have relatively uniform (quasi-uniform) lighting across agiven region. In the instance where the lighting system is at an anglerelative to ground (e.g. not pointed directly at, or normal to theground) one portion (e.g. the top half) of the lighting system will needto be operating at a higher intensity than the lower part of thelighting system to create quasi-uniform lighting of the illuminatedsurface region. When used herein the term quasi-uniform indicates thatthe lighting is intended to be uniform across the illuminated region,and although there may be some spatial variations in intensity theintent is to have the illumination be as close to uniform as possible.

In an embodiment, the lighting system is directionally variable oralterable, such that the lighting system can be directed, eitherstraight down (horizontal orientation), at an angle, or in vertical ornear vertical orientation (for illumination of a vertical surface suchas the side of a building). This is accomplished via use of anelectro-mechanical gimbal having one or more axes that allow adjustmentalong the axes. In an embodiment, a three-axis gimbal is used, allowingfor adjustment of the pitch, roll, and yaw of the lighting system. Thecontrols for the lighting system can be incorporated into the dronecontroller, the base station, a separate independent controller, or intoan existing device such as a smart phone. Commands can be sent to thelighting system via wires, wirelessly, or a combination of the two suchas when a wireless controller communicates to the base station whichthen relays commands to the lighting system on the drone via one or morecables in the tether. Other mechanical and electro-mechanicalarrangements for making the lighting system directionally adjustable canbe utilized including mechanical, electro-mechanical, and piezoelectricsingle axis tilt mechanisms, pan-tilt systems, and other configurationknown to one of skill in the art that provide for pitch control, yawcontrol, or roll control, and combinations thereof. The gimbal can alsobe used in combination with an automated flight control systemincorporated in the drone, such that as the drone reacts to flightconditions (e.g., wind gusts, turbulence, sudden changes in altitude)and the gimbals are automatically adjusted to ensure that the display ofthe light on the target surface remains stable. As such, the gimbalprovides a tracking function in addition to a basic pointing function.In another embodiment, controls can be split such that a groundcontroller is used to determine a specific geolocation for the light,with the drone flight controller then automatically adjusting thegimbals to point the lights at the desired target(s) based on thecurrent fight orientation of the drone.

The directionally alterable lighting system can be utilized both todirect illumination toward a specified area as well as obtain thedesired degree of lighting. In an embodiment, the drone is placed to theside of (horizontally displaced from) the area where the lighting isdesired and tilted to provide indirect lighting.

The direction of the lighting system can be varied in conjunction withthe lighting intensity to achieve the desired coverage and level ofillumination. As with other embodiments, the altitude of the drone canbe monitored and the intensity of the illumination varied based on thealtitude to maintain a desired spatial coverage or degree ofillumination, or the altitude of the drone can be varied to increase ordecrease the area illuminated.

In another embodiment, the lighting system is comprised of a pluralityof independently addressable lights that can also be independentlydirected. In this embodiment, both the direction and intensity of eachlight can be varied to create customized illumination. As with the otherembodiments, the altitude and attitude of the drone can be incorporatedinto the directional and intensity setting of each light. In anembodiment, four lights, each of which can be independently directed andwhose intensity level can be independently controlled are used.

As will be understood by one of skill in the art, having independentlyaddressable lighting units which can be directionally controlled as wellas having controllable intensity levels allows for the ability to obtaina desired illumination pattern including higher illumination in one areathan another, specific illumination shapes (e.g. square, rectangular,oval, circular or approximations thereof) and customized illumination inwhich a vertical surface and a horizontal surface can be simultaneouslyilluminated. The altitude of the drone can also be varied to control thearea to be illuminated, or monitored to incorporate into the calculationof how to set the direction and intensity of the independentlyaddressable lighting units to obtain a specified or quasi-uniformillumination pattern

An embodiment may involve a drone-based system comprising: a basestation, wherein the base station provides power; a drone; a tetherconnecting the base station to the drone and providing the drone withthe power; and a lighting system operably attached to the drone forproviding illumination.

An embodiment may involve a drone-based system comprising: a basestation, wherein the base station provides power; a drone; a tetherconnecting the base station to the drone and providing the drone withthe power; a lighting system operably attached to the drone forproviding illumination; and a light level output adjustment controllerelectrically connected to the lighting system.

An embodiment may involve a drone-based system comprising: a basestation, wherein the base station provides power; a drone; a tetherconnecting the base station to the drone and providing the drone withthe power; a lighting system operably attached to the drone forproviding illumination; an illumination monitor; and a light leveloutput adjustment controller electrically connected to the lightingsystem.

An embodiment may involve a drone-based system comprising: a basestation, wherein the base station provides power; a drone; a tetherconnecting the base station to the drone and providing the drone withthe power; a lighting system operably attached to the drone forproviding illumination; and a light directional controller electricallyconnected to the lighting system.

An embodiment may involve a drone-based system comprising: at least onebase station, wherein the base station provides power; a plurality ofdrones; at least one tether connecting the at least one base station toat least one drone of the plurality of drones and providing the at leastone drone with the power; and a lighting system operably attached to theat least one drone for providing illumination, wherein one or moreparameters of at the least one drone is configurable to provide desiredillumination from the lighting system.

An embodiment may involve a drone comprising: a propulsion systemconfigured to cause the drone to fly; a lighting system operablyattached to the drone for providing illumination; and a port for atether that connects the drone to a base station, wherein the tetherprovides the drone with power from the base station, and wherein thepower is used to operate the propulsion system or the lighting system.

An embodiment may involve a base station comprising: a drone receivingarea on which a drone can be disposed; a power supply for providingpower to the drone; and an attachment for a tether connecting the basestation to the drone and for providing the drone with the power for apropulsion or lighting system of the drone.

An embodiment may involve launching, from a base station, a drone,wherein the drone is connected to the base station by a tether, whereinthe drone includes a lighting system, and wherein the base stationsupplies power for the lighting system by way of the tether; causing thedrone to fly to a specific altitude; and activating the lighting systemto provide downward illumination to a surface.

An embodiment may involve a heat removal system that uses a forced airsource to remove heat from a heat source having cooling fins through useof a flexible duct for receiving air from the forced air source andguiding the received air over the heat source including the surfacecontaining cooling fins, wherein the flexible duct accommodates rotationalong at least two axes. The system can utilize a cowling for sealingand directing the airflow along at least one direction, wherein thesystem allows rotation while sealing and directing the airflow.

These, as well as other embodiments, aspects, advantages, andalternatives, will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the artby reading the following detailed description, with reference whereappropriate to the accompanying drawings. Further, this summary andother descriptions and figures provided herein are intended toillustrate embodiments by way of example only and, as such, thatnumerous variations are possible. For instance, structural elements andprocess steps can be rearranged, combined, distributed, eliminated, orotherwise changed, while remaining within the scope of the embodimentsas claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a tethered drone used in a lighting application, inaccordance with example embodiments;

FIG. 2 illustrates a tethered drone in a lighting application usingimaging and feedback for illumination control, in accordance withexample embodiments;

FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate messaging and marking using tethered drones,respectively, in accordance with example embodiments;

FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate illumination assemblies usingelectro-mechanical and electro-optic lenses, respectively, in accordancewith example embodiments;

FIG. 5 illustrates use of a defined fly zone and no-fly zone for droneapplications, in accordance with example embodiments;

FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrate objective hazards and the use of imagingsystems and maps for objective hazard avoidance, respectively, inaccordance with example embodiments;

FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate safety mechanisms for drones includingparachutes and rocket deceleration, respectively, in accordance withexample embodiments;

FIG. 8 illustrates interception of power in a drone, in accordance withexample embodiments;

FIG. 9 illustrates a system for interception of both power and controlsignals in a drone, in accordance with example embodiments;

FIG. 10 illustrates a sled interface that provides a power interfaceusing an Operating Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) battery, in accordancewith example embodiments;

FIG. 11 illustrates the sled input configuration, in accordance withexample embodiments;

FIG. 12 illustrates a dual sled configuration, in accordance withexample embodiments;

FIG. 13 illustrates an OEM configuration latch and sled overlay latch,in accordance with example embodiments;

FIG. 14 illustrates the repositioning of the battery connector, inaccordance with example embodiments;

FIG. 15 illustrates use of one or more drones as aerial antenna systems,in accordance with example embodiments; and

FIG. 16 is a flow chart, in accordance with example embodiments.

FIG. 17 is a computing device, in accordance with example embodiments.

FIG. 18 is a cluster of computing devices, in accordance with exampleembodiments.

FIG. 19 illustrates a cooling fan and gimbaled LED/heat sink assembly,in accordance with example embodiments.

FIG. 20 illustrates an exploded or assembly view of the cooling fan andgimbaled LED/heat sink assembly of FIG. 19 , in accordance with exampleembodiments.

FIG. 21 illustrates a flexible duct, also known as a heat sock, inaccordance with example embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example methods, devices, and systems are described herein. It should beunderstood that the words “example” and “exemplary” are used herein tomean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any embodimentor feature described herein as being an “example” or “exemplary” is notnecessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over otherembodiments or features unless stated as such. Thus, other embodimentscan be utilized and other changes can be made without departing from thescope of the subject matter presented herein.

Accordingly, the example embodiments described herein are not meant tobe limiting. It will be readily understood that the aspects of thepresent disclosure, as generally described herein, and illustrated inthe figures, can be arranged, substituted, combined, separated, anddesigned in a wide variety of different configurations.

Further, unless context suggests otherwise, the features illustrated ineach of the figures may be used in combination with one another. Thus,the figures should be generally viewed as component aspects of one ormore overall embodiments, with the understanding that not allillustrated features are necessary for each embodiment.

Additionally, any enumeration of elements, blocks, or steps in thisspecification or the claims is for purposes of clarity. Thus, suchenumeration should not be interpreted to require or imply that theseelements, blocks, or steps adhere to a particular arrangement or arecarried out in a particular order.

Herein, the terms “drone”, “unmanned aerial vehicle”, and “UAV” may beused interchangeably.

Herein, the term “surface” generally refers to a target location thatthe drone is configured to illuminate. While a surface may be theground, it could also be water, a platform, an indoor surface, a wall,an irregular surface, or some other type of surface.

FIG. 1 illustrates a configuration of a drone providing illumination inwhich drone 100 is launched from a drone base station 110, the dronebase station 110 having a drone receiving area 112 in which drone 100resides when not in use. A tether 102 connects drone base station 110 todrone 100 and provides power and/or data communications to drone 100.Tether 102 may also have tether lights 106 that indicate the presence oftether 102 to personnel and other airborne objects (e.g. occupied andunoccupied aircraft). Drone base station 104 may also have radiocommunications capabilities including a base station antenna 104, whichallow for communications to other devices and for general network (e.g.Internet) access.

In some embodiments, the tether is active and provides management of thetension on the tether. This may involve automatically releasing tetheras the drone climbs, then maintaining constant tension when the drone ishovering (thereby accommodating wind gusts, and mechanical intrusion onthe tether), and automatically retracting the tether onto a spoolingmechanism when the unit descends. The tension mechanism can beimplemented in a variety of ways. One example is an electrical motorconfigured to spin in such as a direction as to provide a reeling-inforce to the tether, coupled with a slipping clutch, such as a magneticparticle clutch, which is adjusted to provide a specific amount of forcetransfer from the motor to the tether via the spool on which the tethercollects. This effectively creates a force (tension) on the tether. Theclutch torque and motor speed can be adjusted to affect a broad range ofoperating functions, including a high force, slow speed pull in of thedrone, such as might be used for landing, as well as for a low tensionsetting where the drone can pull the cable from the base. As the end oftether is sensed by the operating system in the box, the torque on theclutch can be increased to act as a brake on the vertical ascent of thedrone. Other configurations with tension measurement via deflection andwheel positioning can be used in conjunction with stepper or otherelectric motors to provide similar capabilities.

A camera and illumination assembly 108 is mounted on drone 100,typically hanging from below and attached to drone 100 using a gimbal,stabilizer, or other mechanical or electro-mechanical system that allowsfor positioning of the camera and illumination source separately fromthe positioning of the drone. In one or more embodiments, theillumination emanates from the surface of camera and illuminationassembly 108 parallel to a target surface (e.g., the ground), while inalternate embodiments the illumination emanates from a surface on thecamera and illumination assembly 108 that is perpendicular to the targetsurface. Illumination may also emanate at angles other than parallel orperpendicular to the target surface. Although shown as a combined unit,camera and illumination assembly 108 can be designed and deployed as twoseparate systems, including having separate and independent gimbals,stabilizers, and mechanics for independent positioning.

Camera and illumination assembly 108 produces a cone of illumination 120that provides the desired lighting. In one or more embodiments, theillumination source provides 80,000-100,000 lumens and can readilyilluminate areas of approximately 100′×100′ on a surface. In alternateembodiments where less illumination is required, smaller light sourcescan be deployed, or conversely for more illumination a larger, morepowerful light source can be deployed. Although cone of illumination 120can be a true cone, producing a circular or oval area of illumination(depending on the angle of illumination), other shapes are possible,including trapezoidal (resulting in a somewhat rectangular area ofillumination). As such, when used herein, the term “cone ofillumination” refers to all shapes and configurations of theillumination produced by camera and illumination assembly 108. The shapeof illumination can also have interior cutouts, such as a doughnut shapewhere the cutout area has limited or no light coverage.

As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, a variety of powersupply configurations can be used to power the drone and the lights. Inan embodiment, separate power supplies are used for the drone motors(e.g., motors that power the drone's flight capabilities) and the lights(e.g., camera and illumination assembly 108), with a 400V DC signalbeing sent via the tether for conversion to a 24V constant voltagesignal to operate the drone motors (as well as cooling motors ifpresent) and a separate 400V DC signal being sent via the tether forconversion to a nominal 36V constant current signal to operate thelighting system.

In one embodiment, the power supply system additionally charges a backupbattery in the drone that allows the drone to both stay aloft as well asproviding reduced lighting (low light mode) in the event of failure tothe tether-based power. In an embodiment, active noise suppression isalso used to keep electrical interference out of the power supply lines.

Referring to FIG. 2 , drone 100 can be deployed with camera andillumination assembly 108 to create cone of illumination 120, with thelevel of illumination being monitored on the surface by light monitoringdevices, which in one or more embodiments, are carried or worn by groundpersonnel 200. In one or more embodiments, ground personnel 200 carry alight sensing device (e.g., a light meter) that can be integrated into amobile device 210, or incorporated into a helmet/wearable light meter220. In such embodiments, the light sensing device also knows thegeneral location of where the measurement is taken (e.g., via the globalpositioning system (GPS) or triangulation from wireless networksignals), and camera and illumination assembly 108 can increase ordecrease the illumination at that point, using active illuminationcontrol as described below. Other types of wearable or portable lightsensing devices can be used and incorporated into clothing or workarticles carried by ground personnel 200 or mounted on objects or workdevices within and near the illuminated area.

The light available on the surface can also be measured from drone 100,which is carrying the camera and illumination assembly 108, using thecamera or a stand-alone or integrated light measuring system with opticsand an optical path designed to primarily capture light reflected fromthe surface or other illuminated surface.

In one or more embodiments, fiduciary marks 230 are used to provideinformation back to the imaging system of drone 100. The fiduciary markscan be in the shape of an ‘X’ and made from a highly reflectivematerial, although other shapes and configurations that providesufficient discrimination from the background can be used. For example,in highly reflective environments including snow, ice, and sand, dark(light absorbing) fiduciary marks may be more appropriate than highlyreflective ones.

As shown in the lower half of FIG. 2 , the illumination can be monitoredat a remote monitoring location in which a signal from the drone 100 ordrone base station 110 is received, typically via the Internet and at aNetwork Access Point (NAP) 240. An image 250 from drone 100 displayed onmonitor 246, which in one or more embodiments is connected to server242. In one or more embodiments, server 242 performs image orillumination analysis on image 250. The uniformity of the illuminationcan be measured via automated analysis or by visual inspection bypersonnel. When fiduciary marks 230 are utilized, the degree ofillumination on the marks can be used as a basis for determining thesufficiency or uniformity of the illumination.

Image 250 can also generally be analyzed using a variety of standardimage processing techniques including but not limited to classification,feature extraction, multi-scale signal analysis, pattern recognition,and projection. Image 250 can be used for analysis of the illuminationof the area, analysis of work being performed, inspection of an area forany purpose including construction progress, security, crime sceneanalysis, material stress analysis, livestock monitoring and monitoringfor the presence/absence of animals, crop inspection and analysis, andother inspections and analyses where the illumination provided by cameraand illumination assembly 108 may need to be modified to facilitate theinspection. The illumination source of camera and illumination assembly108 can be appropriately manipulated, as will be discussed, to providemore specific illumination, instruction, guidance, or marking tocomplete either an automated or human-based analysis. Any such analysismay be performed by drone 100, by camera and illumination assembly 108,and/or by a remote computing system.

In one or more embodiments, the illumination is set to a particularlevel through adjustment of the height of drone 100. A value forconstant illumination can be set (e.g. 50 LUX) and that value maintainedby varying the deployed height of drone 100, with a higher altituderesulting in a lower value of illumination. This technique isparticularly useful when the illumination source is of a fixed value.

Drone 100 can also be set to maintain a particular light level on thesurface as drone 100 changes its altitude. This provides both a safetyvalue in that operators and other personnel on the surface are notblinded by the highly intense light, as well providing a constantillumination over the work area.

Notably, drone 100 may be remotely controlled by humans or by software,either directly by way of wireless communication between a controldevice and drone 100, or by way of base station 110.

Referring to FIG. 3A, drone 100 can produce an image 300 on illuminatedarea 310. In one or more embodiments, a gobo projection light is used tocreate a shadow that contains a message, such as the “STOP” indicationshown in FIG. 3A. As such, a temporary traffic instruction such as stop,yield, slow down, or other messages can be provided via illumination. Inalternate embodiments, a laser based mechanism, microelectromechanicalsystems (MEMs), or other controllable optical writing system is used toproduce image 300.

Referring to FIG. 3B, a drone optical mark 320 is placed in illuminatedarea 310 to provide marking for construction, inspection, agricultural(e.g. planting), or to provide guidance for other activities. In one ormore embodiments, a He—Ne laser beam from a small He—Ne laser containedin camera and illumination assembly 108 is used to provide drone opticalmark 320. In alternate embodiments, other controllable optical writingsystems (such as laser based mechanisms, microelectromechanical systems(MEMs), or other controllable optical systems) are used to produceoptical mark 320.

Messaging and marking provided as illustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B can beused in a variety of applications including construction, where guidancesuch as “STOP” is provided for safety reasons, and drone optical mark320 is used for marking a construction line or otherwise providingguidance for the construction, or for determining the extent to whichthe construction is within specification and specification tolerances.

In other embodiments, the analysis of image 250 is performed todetermine if illuminated area 310 has been illuminated properly and toadjust the illumination appropriately and as needed. In constructionapplications, this can involve illumination of areas under construction,analysis of the construction and adjustment of the illumination toeither create more uniform illumination or because an area needsadditional illumination for inspection.

In one or more embodiments, drone 100 is placed on a moving vehicle suchas a construction truck or tractor, and moves with the activity takingplace (e.g., paving in the case of construction or planting in the caseof agriculture). Image 300 or drone optical mark 320 are used to provideguidance for the construction or agricultural activity and can indicatethe intended path for that activity.

A follow-me feature can be provided in which the motion of a user istracked via imaging by the drone, reflection from a laser tracking beam,geolocation via a GPS unit held by the user, or other locationmechanism. In one or more embodiments, the ground control unit istracked by the drone. In any of these embodiments, a follow-me functioncan be activated in which the light follows the user. The drone systemtracks the motion of a ground control unit or other marker and causesthe illumination to follow a user, either through motion of the drone,motion of the lighting system, or a combination of both. In addition,the ground unit can also be on a mobile device or vehicle, either with amanual movement capability, or self-propelled, including with automaticfollowing capabilities.

In alternate embodiments, drone 100 providing illumination andmessaging/marking is used for crime scene analysis. In such embodiments,image 250 can be analyzed on server 242 to determine particular aspectsof a crime scene including but not limited to the presence of shellcasings, bodies, blood, and other crime related artifacts. In one ormore embodiments, the image analysis includes the analysis of thepresence and locations of the shell casings and specifics about thepositions of a body or bodies. An image 300 or drone optical mark 320can be used to indicate areas for additional analysis, instructpersonnel on the scene, or record images/video of specific areas whileusing additional illumination. In one or more embodiments, imageanalysis of the scene is used to determine possible trajectories forbullets that were fired and to postulate the locations of the shooters.In one or more embodiments, drone 100 receives instructions based on theimage analysis and provides imaging or illumination of specified areas.

In one or more embodiments, illumination from drone 100 may cover aspecified area and as a user utilizing the light for a specific purposeapproaches the edge/limitation of the illuminated area, the drone can,by monitoring the position of the user, signal via an optical signal(e.g. blinking, flash, double flash) or other signal (e.g. message toapp on a mobile device) indicating that the drone needs to bere-positioned.

In some deployments, two or more drones may be used in tandem orparallel to provide overlapping or non-overlapping illumination. Forexample, an outdoor soccer event might require or benefit from fourdrones illuminating a playing field from each of its corners. Thesedrones may be centrally controlled via a computer or mobile device(e.g., laptop, phone, tablet, etc.), and may provide live video feeds tosuch a controller.

A camera integrated into the drone can be used to assist with bothlighting as well as for safety and operation of the drone/lightingsystem. In an embodiment, a camera integrated with or associated withthe drone points down or at an angle to make the ground station visible.The camera can be used for a precision landing or to determine anencroachment into the landing area. In an embodiment, an encroachmentarea is defined, either by a radius from the base station or viaestablishment of a perimeter (e.g. via an application allowing the userto draw the perimeter on an image obtained via the camera). In anembodiment, the drone remains within the defined radius or perimeter andthe operator is not allowed to move the drone outside of that radius orperimeter. As will be understood by one of skill in the art, theperimeter can be circular when defined as a radius, but is notconstrained to that shape, and arbitrary shapes based on lines and arcscan be defined via the user interface.

By establishing a perimeter, the security of the unit can be increasedvia detection of an encroachment, which can result in generation of analarm (which may be audible or simply transmitted to an operator orauthority person). In an embodiment, the drone remains in a perpetualhover to eliminate the possibility of tampering by unauthorizedpersonnel, or damage to the tether due to inadvertent encroachment (e.g.a vehicle having backed into the landing area). In an alternateembodiment, a motion sensor is used, either as part of the camera andassociated software or as an independent system separate from thecamera. In an embodiment the motion sensor can be used in conjunctionwith the lighting system to track an object by directing the lighting atthe moving object, moving the drone over the object, or a combination ofdirecting the lighting and moving the drone. As will be understood byone of skill in the art, the camera would typically be shrouded toprevent flooding by the illumination from the lighting system.

Referring to FIG. 4A, an illumination assembly is illustrated. Theillumination assembly can be integrated with the imaging system/camerainto camera and illumination assembly 108. In alternate embodiments, theillumination system is separate from the imaging system, has its owngimbal or other mechanical positioning system, and can be pointedseparately from the camera. As shown in FIG. 4A, the illumination systemcan be based on a Light Emitting Diode (LED) array 400 with individualLEDs 405 arranged in a matrix fashion. In alternate embodiments, LEDs405 can be arranged in a circular or other geometric shape. LEDs 405 mayall be of the same type and optical wavelength, or the arrangement canbe constructed using different LEDs including colors (e.g. red, green,and blue) or other combinations of LEDs emitting at different opticalwavelengths. In one or more embodiments, infrared (IR) emitting LEDs areused to provide illumination in the IR range. This can provide for nightsurveillance or discrete illumination of an area.

In one or more embodiments, LED array 400 is activated in a manner todirect light via a specific activation pattern. This can be accomplishedby using LEDs 405 that project in different directions and activatingthose LEDs that can create the desired illumination pattern. In one ormore embodiments, Adaptive Driving Beam (ADB) technology is used tochange the shape, brightness, and direction of the light. This can bedone both through activation of LEDs in LED array 400 as well as throughthe use of shutter systems, active gobos, and feedback in combinationwith any of the possible methods for the direction or modulation of thelight.

Referring again to FIG. 4A, the side view illustrates the use of LEDarray 400 in combination with a lens assembly 410. Lens assembly 410 canbe comprised of one or more lenses that act to focus, defocus, orotherwise direct light from LED array 400 to create the desired patternand illumination for cone of illumination 120. In one or moreembodiments, lens assembly 410 includes a single lens, while inalternate embodiments lens assembly 410 includes a number of lenses. Thelenses may be conventional curved lenses, spherical, or aspherical (e.g.convex or concave), whereas in alternate embodiments Fresnel lenses areused to obtain flatter and more compact lenses. As illustrated in FIG.4A, lens assembly 410 can be mounted on lens rails 420 to modify thedistance between the optical source (e.g. LED array 400) and the lensassembly 410. Although lens rails 420 are illustrated as a threadedsystem in FIG. 4A, a number of other mechanisms including mechanical andelectro-mechanical systems can be used to adjust the distance betweenlens assembly 410 and the optical source. Such mechanisms are common incameras with autofocusing and with the ability to zoom via electroniccontrol. Such mechanisms include gears, wheels, teeth, stepper motors,and other types of motors that typically convert an electrical signalsuch as current into motion via electromotive and/or magnetomotiveprincipals.

FIG. 4B illustrates an alternate method of modifying cone ofillumination 120, in which an electro-optic lens 420 is used to alterthe projection of the light. In one or more embodiments, liquid crystallenses are used to create a conventional or Fresnel lens to modify coneof illumination 120. In alternate embodiments, other types ofelectro-optic materials or assemblies such as electro-optic polymers,electro-chromic materials, electro-optic etalons, or other materials inwhich the optical indices of the lens can be changed via the applicationof an electric field can be used.

As will be understood by one of skill in the art, combinations ofmechanical and electro-optic systems such as those illustrated in FIGS.4A and 4B can be used to modify cone of illumination 120 to provide thedesired illumination pattern. Additionally, single source illumination,such as a bulb (e.g., incandescent, fluorescent, halogen, sodium, orlaser) can be used as the source of light instead of LED array 400.

Furthermore, the intensity of light produced at various points on thesurface in such a cone of illumination may be based on the distancebetween the drone and these points. As the cone of illumination mayextend farther from the drone in some directions than others, differentpoints on the cone may experience light of different intensities. Insome embodiments, the drone may seek to produce light that has apre-determined target intensity at one or more locations within thecone. The drone's altitude and the angle of the light source withrespect to the surface may form a triangle (e.g., a right triangle),such that the drone can estimate the intensity of the light at variouspoints within the cone using algebraic and/or trigonometric equations.Then, the drone can vary the intensity that it produces and/or itsaltitude in order to achieve the target intensity within at least partof the cone. These calculations could be implemented by the lightingcontroller on the drone itself, or the light output could be continuallymodified by the base station controller as it gets feedback on dronealtitude.

The lighting system, whether comprised of single light source, aplurality of light sources, or light sources that can be mechanicallymoved or pointed, can also utilize lens systems that allow for the lightto be focused (or defocused) on a particular area. In an embodiment,different focal length lenses are used interchangeably to providespotlight to broad area illumination. In an embodiment, a 30-degree lens(having a 30 degree field of view) is used to produce well-defined andfocused high-intensity beam, while a 90-degree lens (having a 90 degreefield of view) can be used to produce a broad beam. Lenses can besubstituted mechanically or electromechanically, or electronically usingliquid crystal lenses or other electro-optic materials orconfigurations. When used in combination with moveable light sources,arbitrarily shaped illumination patterns can be created. As previouslydiscussed, use of a camera in combination with the lighting systemallows for monitoring of the illumination pattern. In an embodiment theillumination pattern captured by the camera is compared to a patternpreviously defined an operator and the lighting system is adjusted, viathe lenses, directing the lights, or both, to achieve the desiredillumination pattern or coverage.

In an embodiment, the light temperature and color can be altered forspecific applications, such as an outdoor movie (e.g. backgroundillumination for security) or for a concert. By adjusting the color andtemperature of the light, the color spectrum can be optimized for theapplication. In an embodiment, the lighting from the drone system isused as part of a light show for a concert, festival, or other event.

As will be understood by one of skill in the art, different units can beused to describe the illumination provided by the drone and associatedlighting system. Radiometric quantities, describing measurements ofelectromagnetic radiation can be used, as well as photometric quantitiesmeasuring the response of the human eye to light. For radiometricquantities, the typical measurements include flux as a unit of powermeasured in Watts; flux per unit area, known as irradiance (W/m²);flux/solid angle, known as radiant intensity and measured in W/sr; andflux/(area*solid angle), known as radiance and measured in W/(m²*sr).For photopic units, typical measurements include luminous flux measuredin lumens (lm); illuminance measure in lm/m2 or lux; luminous intensityas measured in lm/sr or candela (cd) and luminance as measured inlm/(m²*sr), cd/m2, or nits.

The intensity or brightness of light as a function of the distance fromthe source follows an inverse square relationship under mostcircumstances. In the present application, if the flux or luminous fluxof the light source remains constant the intensity of the light on theground will decrease as 1/h² where h is the height of the drone abovethe ground. In an embodiment, the drone operates in a range of 100ft.-400 ft. height above the ground (altitude) and the lightingintensity is varied to maintain a constant state of irradiance (orilluminance) on the target surface (e.g. ground) based on the inversesquare relationship between the height of the drone and the intensity ofthe light. In an embodiment the current to the lighting system is variedto alter the amount of light power generated by the lighting system suchat as the drone ascends the current to the lighting system is increased,and as the drone descends the current to the lighting system isdecreased. As an example, a lighting system comprised of eight CREECXB3590 LED COB arrays would require 689 watts to provide approximately8,000 sq. ft. of usable light from a drone operating at approximately100′ with the optical system configured to implement a sixty (60) degreebeam spread.

Referring to FIG. 5 , the use of fly and no-fly zones is illustrated, inwhich drone 100 connected via tether 102 is flown from drone basestation 110 which is placed in fly zone 500 but which borders no-flyzone 510. Drone 100 can be programmed with data defining no-fly zone,based on digital maps, preprogrammed borders, or other navigationalinformation entered into either drone 100 or drone base station 110. Inone or more embodiments, data is entered through a control panel,handheld device, or other unit associated with drone base station 110.In alternate embodiments, information is accessed from a remote unitsuch as server 242, or another database containing informationsufficient to mark the no-fly zone 510. In one or more embodiments, aGPS unit is contained within drone 100 such that it can determine itsposition relative to the boundaries identified in no-fly zone 510. Inalternate embodiments, drone 100 uses gyroscopic and accelerometer datato calculate its position with respect to base station 110 and is onlyaware of its relative position to drone base station 110. In theseembodiments, the data representing no-fly zone 510 is stored aspositions or a border (e.g., a polygon) relative to drone base station110. In one or more embodiments, a radius is set with drone base stationas the center and the border of no-fly zone 510 is simply defined as thecircle having the defined radius.

In the case where the no-fly zone is determined by a regulatory agency,the system can include an override capability such that authorizedpersonnel can still deploy the lights. This override capability can beimplemented with physical means, such as keys, with passwords, throughremote enablement, or other electronic override means. The system, invarious embodiments, can perform logging of some or all such actions sothat an audit trail can be available of who authorized the no-flyoverride.

Drone 100 and base station 110 can be synchronized so that the drone 100can inform base station 110 regarding its intended destination/hoverlocation. Additionally, drone 100 can be made aware of the location ofbase station 110 and be programmed to not fly beyond a pre-programedradius from base station 110. The radius can be made to be programmableand in one or more embodiments, can be drawn on a mapping application.In one or more embodiments, the permitted drone fly zone can beirregular and programmed via a mapping application.

FIGS. 6A and 6B represent the types of objective hazards that might beencountered by drone 100 during operation, and the imaging that can beused to avoid those objective hazards. Referring to FIG. 6A, a house 620is identified as an objective hazard for drone 100, as are telephonepole 600 and telephone wires 610. Referring to FIG. 6B, in one or moreembodiments, an image 630 produced by camera and illumination assembly108 is used to identify objective hazards such telephone pole 600 andtelephone wires 610. In one or more embodiments, image recognitiontechniques (e.g., an object detection and/or edge detection algorithms)are used to identify the objective hazards which drone 100 then avoids.The image processing can be performed in drone 100, in base station 110,or at a remote server or distributed computing system (e.g. a cloudcomputing system).

In alternate embodiments, as illustrated in the right-hand portion ofFIG. 6B, a map 640 contains information regarding objective hazards,that information being used by drone 100 to avoid the objective hazards.As illustrated, the location of house 620 and power lines within powerline right of way 650 are identified on map 640 and provide sufficientinformation to allow drone 100 to avoid the objective hazards.

Imaging and object detection can be done using one or more of optical,lidar, radar, acoustical, or other technologies-. In one or moreembodiments, images collected using non-optical techniques are combinedwith traditional light images to create additional detail or for use inobject detection and image analysis. These detection systems can beplaced in various locations on the drone to provide image and objectdetection in one or more directions above, below, and to the sides ofthe drone as it is operating. One or more of these technologies can bedeployed simultaneously to enable detection of different types ofobjects, or to provide redundancy.

Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, safety mechanisms can be employed tolessen the probability of harm to ground personnel and damage to objectsin the event of failure of the propulsion system/propellers of drone100. Referring to FIG. 7A, a parachute 700 can be deployed in the eventof a failure. Parachute 700 can be deployed passively or via an ejectionsystem contained within drone 100. FIG. 7B illustrates a rocketpropulsion system 720 which is used to deaccelerate drone 100 in theevent of a failure of the propulsion system/propellers of drone 100. Inone or more embodiments, compressed air is used for rocket propulsionsystem 720. In other embodiments, a chemical-based system is used togenerate a compressed air stream, through the combining of two compoundsthat releases a gas.

In other embodiments, a typical solid rocket is ignited. In theembodiments of FIGS. 7A and 7B, a retraction force 710 can be applied totether 102 and used to assist drone 100 descend towards drone basestation 110 to minimize the possibility of harm to individuals orobjects in the vicinity by having drone 100 land near drone base station110. The retraction force 710 can be generated from a number ofmechanisms including a spring loaded spooling mechanism, electricalmotor, or other mechanisms that are part of the tether control systemthat manages tether 102. Conveniently, tether 102 may be retracted intoa spool or similar mechanism that takes up a limited amount of spaceeither on, within, or nearby base station 110, and may be easilydeployed again from this location.

In alternate embodiments, cushioned propellers are used to minimize harmto personnel and objects in the area in the event of failure of drone100. Additional padding/cushioning on drone 100 can be used to helpminimize the possibility of damage both to drone 100 and personnel andobjects in the event of a sudden descent. In one or more embodiments,autorotation of the propellers can be used to slow the descent. Theprimary light can also be automatically turned off in the case of anemergency to ensure that ground personnel are not accidentally blinded.The light can also be used as beacon with very short duration flashes,or by flashing of only a portion of the array.

In other embodiments, audio signals, such as horns and alarms can soundon the drone in the event of unplanned descent, or even during a plannedascent to alert workers in the area to a change of position.

Notification to personnel responsible for overseeing the health andoperational status of the lighting system can occur via a traditionallight pole as one commonly seen on industrial machines, audible alarms,or through network notifications to the operators on their cell phones,tablets, or other devices. These network notifications can also go toone or multiple individuals or devices, or even to a central monitoringfacility.

The tether cable itself can be designed to be easily visible. Mechanismscan be passive, such as the addition of colored and/or reflective fibersin the outside coating of the tether, or active with small lights,typically LEDS, embedded in the cable such that one would see a line oflights where the tether is in the air. These small lights would besimilar in concept to a Christmas tree light string where the loss ofone LED in the string would not cause failure of all the lights. Theselights can also be used as signaling mechanisms to the operatingpersonnel, so for example they could flash yellow if the system isrunning low on fuel, or is experiencing another operational issue, andred if there is imminent danger of the drone having to land.

In order to provide for further user safety, a Ground Fault CircuitInterrupter (GFCI) can be used on either one or both of the power supplyvoltages (motor and lighting supplies) being sent to the drone via thetether to protect users from inadvertent shorts to ground. In anembodiment, the GFCI senses a current imbalance between the supply (hot)and return (neutral) lines, and causes the GFCI to trip, opening thecircuit and protecting the user. In an embodiment, a safety power dumpcircuit can be used which dumps the wiring to ground on GFCI command(once disconnected from the sources) further reducing the risk of injuryto a user.

Additionally, lightning protection can be provided in the form of agrounding rod, which is placed in the ground near the case and iselectrically connected to the metal components of the case. In anembodiment, a grounding sheath is used on the tether and is alsoconnected to ground via the rod. In this embodiment, should the droneand/or lighting system be struck by lightning the sheath in combinationwith the grounding rod provide a suitable ground path and minimizes thehazard to personnel in the vicinity.

The LED arrays can be designed to be mounted above the propellers inwhich case the control electronics would be configured to turn off thelight as a propeller passes through the light beam. In this way therewould be minimum flicker on the surface as well as minimum reflectedlight upwards. Detection of propeller position can be done usingrotational sensors, such as magnet and Hall effect sensors, or viaultrasonic proximity sensors or other means.

The LED arrays can also be designed to be mounted as a removableaccessory on drones that can be used on or off tether. When mounted as aremovable accessory, the structure of the light array, and associatedcooling heatsinks, can be formed in various shapes to produce a minimumor at least limited impact on the operation of the host drone. Forexample, the array can be designed such that the weight alignment of thelight array when mounted on the host drone minimize or at least decreasethe impact on the center of gravity of the drone. The lights can also beconfigured in a wide square with openings in between to allow sensors,such as optical or LIDAR downward position sensors to function normally.Similarly, the system can be designed to mount such that other safety orflight sensors like sideways obstacle avoidance sensors have a clearpath through the lighting accessory for normal operation.

The LED arrays configured as a removable accessory can further integrateinto the control systems on the drone to provide control of the lights,such as setting intensity, direction, as well as receiving statusinformation through the standard control system of the host drone.

In some embodiments, the control information can be provided to thelight array through the standard host interface, such as an accessorygimbal or universal serial bus type-C (USB-C) port, but the high powerelectrical path used to power the LED lights can come separately throughcables connected directly to the tether power system.

In one or more embodiments, a control system is used to control coolingof an LED such as LED array 400 or other lighting panel. This may befacilitated by use of propeller backwash from drone 100 to cool LEDarray 400 for a period of time after the LEDs are turned off. In one ormore embodiments, a timer is used, with the cooling off time periodbeing determined by the length of time the LEDs were on. In otherembodiments, a default time period (e.g. 3 min) is set. In otherembodiments, temperature sensors placed in or near LED array 400 areused to monitor the temperature of the array and to determine when thepropeller backwash has sufficiently cooled the lighting system. Theaforementioned techniques, based on timed use of propeller backwash forcooling, can be used to greatly extend the lifetime of the lightingsystem, especially when using LEDs, which are degraded by excesstemperatures and in some cases may be permanently damaged byoverheating. Other techniques for cooling LED array 400 or otherlighting systems include heatpipes, water cooling, use of flexiblecopper strand heatpipes, remote heatsinks under the propeller backwash,or even a separate fan.

In order to deal with cold weather situations, where icing of thepropellers or poor performance of the batteries can impair performance,a number of enhancements can be used, including but not limited to adeicing system on the drone which uses heated propeller blades fordeicing, or in which deicing liquids are extruded from a storage systemand sprayed on the blades. The batteries may also be heated to providebetter performance at lower temperatures.

In an embodiment, the lighting system is integrated directly into thepropellers of the drone, with a slipring providing power. An advantageof this embodiment is that the lights are cooled by the constantrotational motion and flow of air over the propellers. The heat from thelights also acts to deice the propellers.

One of the purposes of tether 102 is to provide power to drone 100, aswell as for data communications to/from drone 100, both potentially usedin conjunction with the lighting provided by camera and illuminationassembly 108. Accordingly, tether 102 may include one or more sets ofelectrical wiring to supply electrical power to drone 100 (e.g., copper,aluminum, or other types of wiring). Further, tether 102 may include oneor more sets of electrical or optical wiring to provide two-waycommunication capabilities to drone 100 (e.g., Ethernet cable such asCAT-5 or CAT-6 cable, or other types of wiring including twisted paircable in general to support RS-485, Controller Area Network bus, alsoknown as CAN bus, or other communication protocols). In some cases,power and communications may be supplied by the same physical wiring,such as with powerline communications technology or Power over Ethernet(POE), for example.

FIG. 8 illustrates an embodiment in which power is intercepted for thecamera and illumination system, and in particular, for lighting system860. Although illustrated without reference to tether 102, powersupplied by battery 800 can be substituted with a power connection fromtether 102. Referring to FIG. 8 , battery 800 normally connects to dronecore 802 (encompassing all of the normal flight systems of drone 100,excluding the lighting) through connector 810, a normal connection 805and to mating connector 820. In one or more embodiments, an alternatemating connector 830 is used to intercept power via a power tap send825. Power is provided to lighting system 860 via lighting connector 850and to drone core 802 via alternate connector 840 and power tap send826. Such embodiments provide the significant power needed by lightingsystem 860, as well as drone core 802.

In some drone units, including the DJI Matrice series of drones, thereare more sophisticated interfaces that can require a more complexinterfacing mechanism such as that shown in FIG. 9 . As shown in FIG. 9, drone core 802 is intended to be in communication with drone battery910. In an embodiment, the use of interface electronics 900 allows forinterception of control signals by control system 930, and allows forthe use of a power switch 940 that allows tether power 920 to besubstituted for power from drone battery 910. This allows forsubstitution of power as well as providing for a control interface. Inan embodiment, access to control and management of drone core 802 isprovided via open source software, such that the manufacturer of dronecore 802 allows access to some or all of the commands, interface, andcontrols of the system.

FIGS. 10-14 show a sled based interface system that can be used to allowfor interfacing to the power system of drone 100 as well as for housingone or more OEM batteries.

As illustrated in FIG. 10 , a sled 1000 can be used to house an OEMbattery 1010, with sled 1000 mating to the battery receiving ports ofdrone 100. Sled 1000 also provides the interface to tether 102 viatether interface 1020. FIG. 11 provides a more detailed view of batteryreceptacle 1100, which receives sled 1000 and OEM battery 1010.

In some instances, two or more batteries may be used, requiring the useof multiple sleds, or a sled designed with multiple interfaces andhousing multiple batteries. FIG. 12 illustrates the use of two sleds, aport side sled 1200 and a starboard side sled 1210. OEM batteries suchas OEM battery 1010 can be used in both sleds. Other configurationsusing one or more sleds with multiple batteries can also be used.

FIG. 13 illustrates the use of both an OEM configuration latch 1300 anda sled overlay latch 1310 to provide engagement of and to secure thebatteries in the case of the OEM configuration, or for engagement of andto secure the batteries in the sled configuration in the event one ormore sleds are used to intercept the OEM power system.

FIG. 14 illustrates further detail regarding the positioning of OEMbattery 1010 in sled 1000 and the resulting repositioning of the batteryconnector in drone 100. As shown in FIG. 14 , the original batteryinterface 1400 is substituted by a modified battery interface 1410. Inan embodiment, OEM battery 1010 is rotated 90 degrees for insertion into sled 1000. Use of the modified battery interface 1410 and the sledallows for housing of power interception circuitry such as thatillustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9 as well as for housing tether interface1020. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, otherconfigurations, including sleds and other mechanical interfaces, can beutilized to house tether interface 1020 and to provide access to thedrone power and control bus. These alternate configurations includingmodified connector assemblies and interface blocks that go between theoriginal battery interface 1400 and an alternate interface that allowsfor interconnection with tether 102 to allow power to be supplied todrone 100 as well as for transmission/reception of control and datasignals over tether 102.

FIG. 15 illustrates the use of one or more drones 100 as bearers ofantennas for some type of wireless or broadcast services. In theembodiment shown in FIG. 15 , multiple drones 100, forming the cornersof a rectangle, are launched from their respective base stations 110 andare connected to the respective base stations 110 via their respectivetethers 102. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 15 , antenna systems 1500,1510, 1520, and 1530 are deployed on drones in each corner of therectangle.

Although antenna systems 1500, 1510, 1520, and 1530 are shown as dipoleantennas, a variety of antenna systems can be utilized and hosted bydrone 100. This can also include the incorporation of the antenna intether 102, and can include long wire radiating elements as well asleaky waveguide (e.g. coaxial) antennas, or other structures thatpurposefully leak radiation along tether 102 to create a desiredradiation pattern and to provide for communications in an area below thedrones 100.

In some embodiments, antennas 1500, 1510, 1520, and 1530 act as a phasedarray system with the phase of the signal being fed to each antennaresulting in desired radiation pattern under drones 100. This can beuseful for directing communications signals to desired areas. As will beunderstood by one of skill in the art, the wavelengths for which thistechnique is feasible are wavelengths comparable to the separation ofdrones 100. In instances, such as higher frequencies with wavelengths onthe order of centimeters or less, other techniques can be used tocontrol the radiation patterns of antennas 1500, 1510, 1520, and 1530.In an embodiment the power to each of antennas 1500, 1510, 1520, and1530 is controlled to provide the desired radiation pattern and coveragefor reception of signals.

The use of airborne drone antennas such as those illustrated in FIG. 15allows for distribution of signals in different frequency bands and fordifferent services including 802.11, 802.11g, WIFI-6, 4G LTE, 5G, andother telecommunications services based on a variety of standards.

The drone with integrated lighting system can be stored and transportedin a case with wheels, which in one embodiment has two doors that opento allow retrieval of the drone with the integrated lighting system. Thecase also allows for storage of a handheld wireless controller for thesystem, as well as housing the dual power supplies (drone and lightingsystem). A mechanical level, such as a bubble (spirit) level can beincorporated into the case. In an embodiment, the case is made of acomposite material to reduce weight, and fully loaded weighsapproximately 70 lb, allowing for human transport.

In an embodiment, ingress protection is provided as per a standard andthe case is designed to meet the IP67 standard which provides forprotection against contact with objects greater than 1 mm in diameter,such as a wire or small tool, complete protection against dust overextended time, and protection against short periods of immersion inwater (15 cm and 1 m). In an embodiment, the drone and lighting systemitself may have the same or different ingress protection rating.

In an alternate embodiment, the drone and lighting system are integratedinto a consumer vehicle such as the trunk of a sedan or the back of apickup truck. In an embodiment, the controls for the drone and lightingsystem can be integrated into the dashboard of the vehicle or canalternatively be provided via a cell phone app.

In an embodiment, the drone with lighting system can be mountedupside-down and without launching to provide for vertical illumination,such as would be required to illuminate the underside of a bridge. In anembodiment, a tripod mount is built into the top surface of the dronefor such applications. The tripod can also be integrated into the case,with a matching mount point on the drone to connect it to the tripod.When in this configuration, the drone 100 could also incorporate asafety interlock, either mechanical, electrical, or software based,which would prevent the drones rotors from operating, as a safetymeasure. In the case where the rotors are providing the cooling airflowfor the LED lights, the rotors may operate at a safer slow speed onlysufficient to provide the necessary cooling. Further, in thisconfiguration, the light gimbals and associated control systems could beconfigured to be fully operational.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart illustrating an example embodiment. The processillustrated by FIG. 16 may be carried out by a drone, a base station, aremote controller, or some combination thereof. However, the process canbe carried out by other types of devices or device subsystems. Theembodiments of FIG. 16 may be simplified by the removal of any one ormore of the features shown therein. Further, these embodiments may becombined with features, aspects, and/or implementations of any of theprevious figures or otherwise described herein.

Block 1600 may involve launching, from a base station, a drone, whereinthe drone is connected to the base station by a tether, wherein thedrone includes a lighting system, and wherein the base station suppliespower for the lighting system by way of the tether.

Block 1602 may involve causing the drone to fly to a specific altitude.The specific altitude may be predetermined or determined in-flight bythe drone, the base station, or a remote controller.

Block 1604 may involve activating the lighting system to providedownward illumination to a surface. The lighting system may be activatedonce the drone reaches the specific altitude or when the drone is on itsway to the specific altitude.

In some embodiments, the tether contains active light sources.

In some embodiments, the active light sources run for substantially alength of the tether.

In some embodiments, the tether contains light reflecting elements.

In some embodiments, the light reflecting elements run for substantiallya length of the tether.

In some embodiments, the base station contains a wireless communicationstransceiver.

Some embodiments further involve directionally controlling, by the basestation, the lighting system.

In some embodiments, a camera is operably attached to the drone.

In some embodiments, the lighting system provides at least 20,000lumens.

In some embodiments, the downward illumination comprises an illuminationpattern. These embodiments may further involve altering the illuminationpattern.

In some embodiments, an illumination control system of the drone altersthe illumination pattern.

In some embodiments, the downward illumination comprises an illuminationpattern. These embodiments may further involve altering an intensity ofthe downward illumination.

In some embodiments, the drone also includes a light level outputadjustment controller electrically connected to the lighting system.

In some embodiments, the light level output adjustment controllermodifies light output of the lighting system based on an amount oftether deployed.

In some embodiments, the light level output adjustment controllermodifies light output of the lighting system based on a verticaldistance of the drone from the base station.

In some embodiments, the light level output adjustment controllermodifies light output of the lighting system based on a distance of thedrone from the base station.

In some embodiments, the light level output adjustment controllermodifies light output of the lighting system to decrease the downwardillumination as the drone gets closer to the surface.

In some embodiments, the light level output adjustment controllermodifies light output of the lighting system based on a calculation ofthe downward illumination including at least parameters of distance fromthe surface and light intensity.

Some embodiments may further involve operably adjusting, by way of thelight level output adjustment controller, independent portions of thelighting system.

Some embodiments may further involve varying an altitude of the drone toobtain a specific intensity of illumination.

Some embodiments may further involve operably adjusting, by way of thelight level output adjustment controller, the lighting system based onaltitude restrictions.

In some embodiments, an illumination monitor is operably attached to thedrone.

In some embodiments, reflective elements are deployed in a regionilluminated by the lighting system.

In some embodiments, the illumination monitor measures incident light.

In some embodiments, the illumination monitor is incorporated into amobile computing device.

In some embodiments, the mobile computing device is a smart phone.

In some embodiments, the illumination monitor is a wearable sensor.

In some embodiments, a light directional controller is electricallyconnected to the lighting system.

Some embodiments may further involve altering, by way of the lightdirectional controller, an altitude of the drone to obtain a desiredcone of illumination on the surface.

Some embodiments may further involve altering, by way of the lightdirectional controller, a yaw or an attitude of the drone to obtain adesired cone of illumination on the surface.

In some embodiments, lighting system comprises a gimbal operativelycoupled to the light directional controller.

Some embodiments may further involve illuminating, by the lightingsystem, a remote light position target.

In some embodiments, the remote light position target comprises one ormore reflective fiduciary marks.

In some embodiments, the remote light position target transmitspositional information.

In some embodiments, the remote light position target comprises awearable device.

In some embodiments, the remote light position target comprises a smartphone.

In some embodiments, the lighting system comprises adjustable lenses foraltering a shape of the downward illumination.

In some embodiments, the lighting system comprises a projector for lightmessaging. In some embodiments, the projector generates written messageson the surface.

In some embodiments, the lighting system comprises a laser basedmessaging system. In some embodiments, the laser based messaging systemgenerates written messages on the surface.

In some embodiments, the power and control signals for the lightingsystem are supplied to the drone by way of two different physical portsof the drone.

In some embodiments, the power and control signals for the lightingsystem are supplied to the drone by way of two different electricalpathways in the drone.

FIG. 17 is a simplified block diagram exemplifying a computing device1700, illustrating some of the components that could be included in acomputing device arranged to operate in accordance with the embodimentsherein. Computing device 1700 represents types of computing systems thatcould be used onboard drone 100, or as server 242 or a user-facingdevice that controls and/or managed the operations of drone 100 and/orserver 242, for example. Thus, computing device 1700 could be a clientdevice (e.g., a device actively operated by a user), a server device(e.g., a device that provides computational services to client devices),or some other type of computational platform. Some server devices mayoperate as client devices from time to time in order to performparticular operations, and some client devices may incorporate serverfeatures.

In this example, computing device 1700 includes processor 1702, memory1704, network interface 1706, and input/output unit 1708, all of whichmay be coupled by system bus 1710 or a similar mechanism. In someembodiments, computing device 1700 may include other components and/orperipheral devices (e.g., detachable storage, printers, and so on).

Processor 1702 may be one or more of any type of computer processingelement, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a co-processor (e.g.,a mathematics, graphics, or encryption co-processor), a digital signalprocessor (DSP), a network processor, and/or a form of integratedcircuit or controller that performs processor operations. In some cases,processor 1702 may be one or more single-core processors. In othercases, processor 1702 may be one or more multi-core processors withmultiple independent processing units. Processor 1702 may also includeregister memory for temporarily storing instructions being executed andrelated data, as well as cache memory for temporarily storingrecently-used instructions and data.

Memory 1704 may be any form of computer-usable memory, including but notlimited to random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), andnon-volatile memory (e.g., flash memory, hard disk drives, solid statedrives, compact discs (CDs), digital video discs (DVDs), and/or tapestorage). Thus, memory 1704 represents both main memory units, as wellas long-term storage. Other types of memory may include biologicalmemory.

Memory 1704 may store program instructions and/or data on which programinstructions may operate. By way of example, memory 1704 may store theseprogram instructions on a non-transitory, computer-readable medium, suchthat the instructions are executable by processor 1702 to carry out anyof the methods, processes, or operations disclosed in this specificationor the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 17 , memory 1704 may include firmware 1704A, kernel1704B, and/or applications 1704C. Firmware 1704A may be program codeused to boot or otherwise initiate some or all of computing device 1700.Kernel 1704B may be an operating system, including modules for memorymanagement, scheduling, and management of processes, input/output, andcommunication. Kernel 1704B may also include device drivers that allowthe operating system to communicate with the hardware modules (e.g.,memory units, networking interfaces, ports, and buses) of computingdevice 1700. Applications 1704C may be one or more user-space softwareprograms, such as web browsers or email clients, as well as any softwarelibraries used by these programs. Memory 1704 may also store data usedby these and other programs and applications.

Network interface 1706 may take the form of one or more wirelineinterfaces, such as Ethernet (e.g., Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, andso on). Network interface 1706 may also support communication over oneor more non-Ethernet media, such as coaxial cables or power lines, orover wide-area media, such as Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET) ordigital subscriber line (DSL) technologies. Network interface 1706 mayadditionally take the form of one or more wireless interfaces, such asIEEE 802.11 (Wifi), BLUETOOTH®, GPS, or a wide-area wireless interface.However, other forms of physical layer interfaces and other types ofstandard or proprietary communication protocols may be used over networkinterface 1706. Furthermore, network interface 1706 may comprisemultiple physical interfaces. For instance, some embodiments ofcomputing device 1700 may include Ethernet, BLUETOOTH®, and Wifiinterfaces.

Input/output unit 1708 may facilitate user and peripheral deviceinteraction with computing device 1700. Input/output unit 1708 mayinclude one or more types of input devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse,a touch screen, and so on. Similarly, input/output unit 1708 may includeone or more types of output devices, such as a screen, monitor, printer,and/or one or more LEDs. Additionally or alternatively, computing device1700 may communicate with other devices using a USB or high-definitionmultimedia interface (HDMI) port interface, for example.

In some embodiments, one or more computing devices like computing device1700 may be deployed to remotely support operations of drone 100 (e.g.,remote monitoring, image processing, navigation, etc.). The exactphysical location, connectivity, and configuration of these computingdevices may be unknown and/or unimportant to client devices.Accordingly, the computing devices may be referred to as “cloud-based”devices that may be housed at various remote data center locations.

FIG. 18 depicts a cloud-based server cluster 1800 in accordance withexample embodiments. In FIG. 18 , operations of a computing device(e.g., computing device 1700) may be distributed between server devices1802, data storage 1804, and routers 1806, all of which may be connectedby local cluster network 1808. The number of server devices 1802, datastorages 1804, and routers 1806 in server cluster 1800 may depend on thecomputing task(s) and/or applications assigned to server cluster 1800.

For example, server devices 1802 can be configured to perform variouscomputing tasks of computing device 1700. Thus, computing tasks can bedistributed among one or more of server devices 1802. To the extent thatthese computing tasks can be performed in parallel, such a distributionof tasks may reduce the total time to complete these tasks and return aresult. For purposes of simplicity, both server cluster 1800 andindividual server devices 1802 may be referred to as a “server device.”This nomenclature should be understood to imply that one or moredistinct server devices, data storage devices, and cluster routers maybe involved in server device operations.

Data storage 1804 may be data storage arrays that include drive arraycontrollers configured to manage read and write access to groups of harddisk drives and/or solid state drives. The drive array controllers,alone or in conjunction with server devices 1802, may also be configuredto manage backup or redundant copies of the data stored in data storage1804 to protect against drive failures or other types of failures thatprevent one or more of server devices 1802 from accessing units of datastorage 1804. Other types of memory aside from drives may be used.

Routers 1806 may include networking equipment configured to provideinternal and external communications for server cluster 1800. Forexample, routers 1806 may include one or more packet-switching and/orrouting devices (including switches and/or gateways) configured toprovide (i) network communications between server devices 1802 and datastorage 1804 via local cluster network 1808, and/or (ii) networkcommunications between server cluster 1800 and other devices viacommunication link 1810 to network 1812.

Additionally, the configuration of routers 1806 can be based at least inpart on the data communication requirements of server devices 1802 anddata storage 1804, the latency and throughput of the local clusternetwork 1808, the latency, throughput, and cost of communication link1810, and/or other factors that may contribute to the cost, speed,fault-tolerance, resiliency, efficiency, and/or other design goals ofthe system architecture.

As a possible example, data storage 1804 may include any form ofdatabase, such as a structured query language (SQL) database. Varioustypes of data structures may store the information in such a database,including but not limited to tables, arrays, lists, trees, and tuples.Furthermore, any databases in data storage 1804 may be monolithic ordistributed across multiple physical devices.

Server devices 1802 may be configured to transmit data to and receivedata from data storage 1804. This transmission and retrieval may takethe form of SQL queries or other types of database queries, and theoutput of such queries, respectively. Additional text, images, video,and/or audio may be included as well. Furthermore, server devices 1802may organize the received data into web page or web applicationrepresentations. Such a representation may take the form of a markuplanguage, such as HTML, the eXtensible Markup Language (XML), or someother standardized or proprietary format. Moreover, server devices 1802may have the capability of executing various types of computerizedscripting languages, such as but not limited to Perl, Python, PHPHypertext Preprocessor (PHP), Active Server Pages (ASP), JAVASCRIPT®,and so on. Computer program code written in these languages mayfacilitate the providing of web pages to client devices, as well asclient device interaction with the web pages. Alternatively oradditionally, JAVA® may be used to facilitate generation of web pagesand/or to provide web application functionality.

The present disclosure is not to be limited in terms of the particularembodiments described in this application, which are intended asillustrations of various aspects. Many modifications and variations canbe made without departing from its scope, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art. Functionally equivalent methods and apparatuseswithin the scope of the disclosure, in addition to those describedherein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoingdescriptions. Such modifications and variations are intended to fallwithin the scope of the appended claims.

The above detailed description describes various features and operationsof the disclosed systems, devices, and methods with reference to theaccompanying figures. The example embodiments described herein and inthe figures are not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments can beutilized, and other changes can be made, without departing from thescope of the subject matter presented herein. It will be readilyunderstood that the aspects of the present disclosure, as generallydescribed herein, and illustrated in the figures, can be arranged,substituted, combined, separated, and designed in a wide variety ofdifferent configurations.

With respect to any or all of the message flow diagrams, scenarios, andflow charts in the figures and as discussed herein, each step, block,and/or communication can represent a processing of information and/or atransmission of information in accordance with example embodiments.Alternative embodiments are included within the scope of these exampleembodiments. In these alternative embodiments, for example, operationsdescribed as steps, blocks, transmissions, communications, requests,responses, and/or messages can be executed out of order from that shownor discussed, including substantially concurrently or in reverse order,depending on the functionality involved. Further, more or fewer blocksand/or operations can be used with any of the message flow diagrams,scenarios, and flow charts discussed herein, and these message flowdiagrams, scenarios, and flow charts can be combined with one another,in part or in whole.

A step or block that represents a processing of information cancorrespond to circuitry that can be configured to perform the specificlogical functions of a herein-described method or technique.Alternatively or additionally, a step or block that represents aprocessing of information can correspond to a module, a segment, or aportion of program code (including related data). The program code caninclude one or more instructions executable by a processor forimplementing specific logical operations or actions in the method ortechnique. The program code and/or related data can be stored on anytype of computer readable medium such as a storage device including RAM,a disk drive, a solid-state drive, or another storage medium.

The computer readable medium can also include non-transitory computerreadable media such as non-transitory computer readable media that storedata for short periods of time like register memory and processor cache.The non-transitory computer readable media can further includenon-transitory computer readable media that store program code and/ordata for longer periods of time. Thus, the non-transitory computerreadable media may include secondary or persistent long-term storage,like ROM, optical or magnetic disks, or solid-state drives, for example.The non-transitory computer readable media can also be any othervolatile or non-volatile storage systems. A non-transitory computerreadable medium can be considered a computer readable storage medium,for example, or a tangible storage device.

Moreover, a step or block that represents one or more informationtransmissions can correspond to information transmissions betweensoftware and/or hardware modules in the same physical device. However,other information transmissions can be between software modules and/orhardware modules in different physical devices.

Turning back to the design of the drone, because the light source cangenerate significant heat energy, it may be necessary to providecooling. Light Emitting Diode (LED) assemblies, for instance, generatesignificant heat that needs to be removed to keep the LED assembly at orbelow about 85 degrees Celsius to avoid damage to the LEDs. It isdesirable to be able to direct the light assembly/LEDs, which can beaccomplished using a gimbal assembly that can provide the ability tomove the light assembly. However, allowing the light assembly to rotateon one or more axes can place additional requirements on the coolingsystem, due to changes in the geometry of the cooling and in particulardue to changed airflow over the light assembly.

FIG. 19 illustrates a cooling fan and gimbaled LED/heat sink assembly inwhich a cooling fan 1950 directs air through a drone mount 1940. Dronemount 1940 also houses a flexible duct or heat sock 1930 that containsthe airflow and directs it appropriately over the cooling fins. LED andheat sink assembly 1920 is gimbaled such that it can rotate about X axis1910 as well as Y axis 1900. Although such rotation may be limited, itallows the light to be directed at angles other than normal to theground. As will be discussed, heat sock 1930 allows the LED/heat sinkassembly to be rotated on two axes while maintaining the airflow.

As illustrated in the assembly view of FIG. 20 , the cooling fan andgimbaled LED/heat sink assembly of FIG. 19 is comprised of a lowergimbal frame 2001 that connects to a lower sock mount 2002 and LEDgimbal housing 2003 and primary gimbal mount 2004. An LED array coverseal 2005 connects to an LED array cover plate 2006, with a LED arrayupper seal 2007 providing additional sealing. Heat sock 1930 is used todirect cooling air over an LED array heat sink 2009, which containscooling fins and is mechanically and thermally attached to an LED PCBarray 2010. In an embodiment, a 60 degree lens 2011 is used inconjunction with a lens reflector 2012.

A drone side lower gimbal mount 2013 attaches to heat sock 1930.Stainless steel head screws 2014 are used to attach LED array heat sink2009 to lower gimbal frame 2001. Tapered heat-set inserts 2015 are usedretain lens reflector 2012 in LED gimbal housing 2003. Low profileprecision shoulder screws 2016 are used in conjunction with oil-embeddedflanged sleeve bearing 2017 to allow rotation about X axis 1910. Anadditional oil-embedded flanged sleeve bearing is mounted in primarygimbal mount 2004 to allow rotation about Y axis 1900.

Stainless steel flat head screws 2018 are used to hold the lens assemblytogether and attach it to LED array heat sink 2009. Aluminum head screws2019 to assembly primary gimbal mount 2004 to lower gimbal mount 2013. Amain servo cover 2020 covers and protects servo arm 2021 and main servermotor 2022. A drone side upper mount 2024 attaches to an upper fan mount2025 that houses cooling fan 2026.

A more detailed view of heat sock 1930 is provided in FIG. 21illustrating Y axis pleats 2100, a fan side seal 2110 and a light sideseal 2120. In operation, Y axis pleats 2100 allow for substantialrotation about the Y axis because the pleats expand on one side andcompress on the other as LED and heat sink assembly 1920 is rotated on Yaxis 1900. The flexibility of heat sock 1930 also allows for rotation ofthe LED and heat sink assembly 1920 about X axis 1910. In an embodiment,the degree of rotation about Y axis 1900 is greater than the degree ofrotation about X axis 1910. In an alternate embodiment, pleats areincorporated into all four sides of heat sock 1930 to provide more equalamounts of rotation about both X axis 1910 and Y axis 1900. In anembodiment, heat sock 1930 is made of silicone such as silicone shore00-20.

In an embodiment, a 24V fan having a diameter of 80 mm (3.15″) producinga flow rate on the order of 75-100 cfm at a relatively high pressure onthe order of 120-150 pa is used to create the airflow. In an alternateembodiment, a different source of air, such as turbulence off the rotorsof the drone, can be used to create air pressure for cooling.

In operation, LED and heat sink assembly 1920 is rotated about the Xaxis 1910 such that the cooling fins of LED array heat sink 2009 aremore exposed on one side than the other. As LED and heat sink assembly1920 is rotated more about X axis 1910, the cooling fins may becompletely occluded on one side and completely exposed on the other. Thecooling air is contained by the heat sock 1930 and the air is forcedover the exposed side of the cooling fins of LED array heat sink 2009,effectively removing the heat. In this way, heat sock 1930 inconjunction with LED/heat sink assembly 1920 maintains cooling airflowwhile LED/heat sink assembly 1920 is rotated about X axis 1910.

With respect to rotation about Y axis 1910, the Y axis pleats 2100stretch on one side and compress on the other to accommodate therotation and maintain sealing and airflow, thus supporting continuouscooling of LED and heat sink assembly 1920. In operation, the coolingfan and gimbaled LED heat sink assembly can operate in a wide range ofweather conditions, with rain and precipitation passing through theassembly.

The particular arrangements shown in the figures should not be viewed aslimiting. It should be understood that other embodiments could includemore or less of each element shown in a given figure. Further, some ofthe illustrated elements can be combined or omitted. Yet further, anexample embodiment can include elements that are not illustrated in thefigures.

1. A drone-based system comprising: a base station, wherein the basestation is configured to provide drone control and power; a drone; atether connecting the base station to the drone and configured toprovide the drone with the power from the base station; a lightingsystem, operably attached to the drone via the tether, configured togenerate illumination of a ground area, wherein the illumination of theground area is controllable by modifying least one of an intensity ofthe illumination and a height of the drone above the ground area; and alight level output adjustment controller electrically connected to thelighting system and configured to modify the intensity of theillumination generated by the lighting system based on an amount of thetether deployed between the base station and the drone. 2-6. (canceled)7. The drone-based system of claim 1, wherein the light level outputadjustment controller is configured to modify the intensity of theillumination generated by the lighting system based on a calculation ofthe illumination including at least a parameter of a distance from asurface and a parameter of the intensity.
 8. The drone-based system ofclaim 1, wherein the lighting system comprises a plurality ofindividually-addressable intensity-controlled lighting units.
 9. Thedrone-based system of claim 8, wherein the light level output adjustmentcontroller modifies output from at least one of the plurality ofindividually-addressable intensity-controlled lighting units to obtainquasi-uniform lighting of an illuminated surface region.
 10. Thedrone-based system of claim 1, wherein the height of the drone above theground area is varied to obtain a specified intensity of theillumination. 11-23. (canceled)
 24. A method comprising: launching, froma base station, a drone, wherein the drone is connected to the basestation by a tether, wherein the drone includes a lighting system, andwherein the base station supplies power for the lighting system by wayof the tether, wherein the drone also includes a light level outputadjustment controller electrically connected to the lighting system, andwherein the light level output adjustment controller modifies lightoutput of the lighting system based on an amount of tether deployed;causing the drone to fly to a specific altitude; and activating thelighting system to provide downward illumination to a surface. 25-37.(canceled)
 38. The method of claim 2, wherein the light level outputadjustment controller modifies light output of the lighting system basedon a vertical distance of the drone from the base station.
 39. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the light level output adjustment controllermodifies light output of the lighting system based on a distance of thedrone from the base station.
 40. The method of claim 4, wherein thelight level output adjustment controller modifies light output of thelighting system to decrease the downward illumination as the drone getscloser to the surface.
 41. The method of claim 24, wherein the lightlevel output adjustment controller modifies light output of the lightingsystem based on a calculation of the downward illumination including atleast parameters of distance from the surface and light intensity. 42.The method of claim 24, further comprising: operably adjusting, by wayof the light level output adjustment controller, independent portions ofthe lighting system.
 43. The method of claim 24, further comprising:varying an altitude of the drone to obtain a specific intensity ofillumination.
 44. The method of claim 24, further comprising: operablyadjusting, by way of the light level output adjustment controller, thelighting system based on altitude restrictions. 45-66. (canceled)
 67. Adrone-based system comprising: a base station, wherein the base stationis configured to provide drone control and power; a drone; a tetherconnecting the base station to the drone and configured to provide thedrone with the power from the base station; a lighting system, operablyattached to the drone via the tether, configured to generateillumination of a ground area, wherein the illumination of the groundarea is controllable by modifying least one of an intensity of theillumination and a height of the drone above the ground area; and alight level output adjustment controller electrically connected to thelighting system and configured to modify the intensity of theillumination generated by the lighting system, wherein the light leveloutput adjustment controller is configured to modify the intensity ofthe illumination generated by the lighting system based on a calculationof the illumination including at least a parameter of a distance from asurface and a parameter of the intensity.
 68. The drone-based system ofclaim 67, wherein the lighting system comprises a plurality ofindividually-addressable intensity-controlled lighting units.
 69. Thedrone-based system of claim 68, wherein the light level outputadjustment controller modifies output from at least one of the pluralityof individually-addressable intensity-controlled lighting units toobtain quasi-uniform lighting of an illuminated surface region.
 70. Thedrone-based system of claim 67, wherein the height of the drone abovethe ground area is varied to obtain a specified intensity of theillumination.